Global Rights, Local Struggles: Barriers to Women's Participation in Community Land Decision-Making

Jun 28, 2017 | Celine Salcedo-La Vina
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Seven women quietly filed in and sat on the rough cement floor of the tiny stone block house. We were in a small, dusty village in Tanzania's Kisarawe District, just outside the capital, Dar es Salaam. There were a couple of wooden chairs and empty spots on an old couch, but none of the women ventured to sit on them. Except for two spokeswomen, they remained largely silent during the interview, which happened only with the permission of the men in charge of the village.

We met with them to find out how their lives had changed after village land was acquired by private investors a few years back. None of the women were involved beyond attendance at a village meeting to discuss the acquisition. During that meeting, the women said nothing, because men speak for the community. Some women stayed home to attend to domestic chores. The decisions regarding the transfer of land to investors were made by village authorities, mostly men.